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Top 6 Financial Modeling Software for Your SaaS Business in 2025

Find the right financial modeling software to understand your business’ financial performance and make projections

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Most companies conduct some kind of financial planning or budgeting exercises to forecast the performance of their business and products. Financial modeling is a crucial part of this process, as it guides strategic and future planning, enabling informed decision-making.

With rapid technological advancements and the sheer volume of available data, the need for data-driven and insightful decision-making has only increased. Financial planning and modeling help CFOs and businesses navigate the uncertainties in the current market and drive sustainable growth. 

Financial modeling usually involves creating a spreadsheet (typically MS Excel) of a company's costs and income to use in calculating the impact of a future event or decision. Most SaaS financial models are spreadsheets that outline the company’s financial performance and help with projections for its leaders and investors. 

In this guide, we have detailed six of the best SaaS financial modeling software platforms on the market in 2025. For each platform, there is a summary of key features related to SaaS financial modeling with a few pros and cons highlighted, which might be helpful as you evaluate your options.


The best financial modeling software compared

We have reviewed a range of second and third generation, cloud-based financial planning and analysis (FP&A) solutions to help you find the best fit for your unique business and requirements for financial modeling software, whether you’re a small startup or mid-market player.

Here’s a look at a side-by-side comparison of the key features businesses typically consider in any financial modeling software platform. We have also provided a detailed analysis of the different platforms mentioned here later in the article.

Software/
Platform
DrivetrainDatarailsCubeVenaMosaicWorkday Adaptive Planning
Price
$$
$-$$
$$
$$-$$$
$$
$$-$$$
Best for
SMB to  Mid-Market
SMB to  Mid-Market
SMB to  Mid-Market
Mid-Market
SMB to  Mid-Market
Mid-Market
Scalability
High
Moderate; Same limitations as MS Excel
Moderate; Same limitations as Google Sheets
High but requires extensive  planning
Moderate
Scalable but requires continual adjustments
Type of FP&A solution
3rd
Generation
3rd
Generation
2nd
Generation
2nd
Generation
2nd
Generation
2nd
Generation
Native
Integration
800+ OOTB integrations
70+ OOTB integrations
22 OOTB integrations
Few native integrations
29 OOTB integrations
7 OOTB
integrations
Predictive Forecasting
Multidimensional modeling
Multiple scenarios and What-if analysis
Real-time automated multidimensional reporting
Collaboration with fine-grained access controls
Customizable modeling and reporting templates
unknown
Dynamic Dashboards

Drivetrain

Drivetrain is a third-generation FP&A software solution purpose-built for B2B and SaaS businesses. With Drivetrain, CFOs and finance teams are able to easily create more scalable and reliable financial models by building integrated plans, providing budgets and forecasts, tracking progress in real-time, and resolving bottlenecks that hinder growth. 

Drivetrain offers a powerful calculation engine capable of handling highly complex multi-dimensional models.

Price: 

$$

Best for: 

Small and Mid-sized companies

Pros:
  • Customizable forecasting tool

  • Best-in-class calculation engine

  • Marries data from multiple source systems natively

  • Provides detailed variance reports in real-time

  • Self-serve reporting and dashboards

  • Automated 3-statement model and reports

  • Ensures multi-currency & entity support

Cons:
  • Heavily focused on B2B businesses

Key financial modeling features in Drivetrain:
  • Multi-dimensional modeling capabilities

  • Real-time budget and Rolling budgets and forecasts vs. actuals

  • Data visualization and management

  • Custom metric builder

  • Scenario planning and What-If analysis

While not purpose-built for B2B or SaaS businesses, Datarails is an Excel-based FP&A tool that automates financial planning, reporting, analysis, and data gathering. While it enables users to continue using their existing financial models in Excel, the platform has challenges regarding complex Excel calculations (sometimes, teams revert to Excel defaults).

Price: 

$-$$ 

Best for: 

Small and Mid-market

Pros:
  • Budgeting, consolidation and variance analysis

  • Integration with user-friendly interface

  • Multi-currency support via FX translation tables

  • Different reporting formats (e.g., dashboards, storyboards, report builder)

Cons:
  • No native integrations with Google Sheets

  • Data refresh is slow

  • Requires custom formulas and syntax for many routine operations

  • Lacks functionality needed for advanced multidimensional modeling

  • Technical glitches due to back-end updates

  • Limited role based access controls

    Key financial modeling features in Datarails:
    • Financial reporting

    • Budgeting and forecasting

    • Analysis and scenario modeling

    • Data visualization

    A heavily edited screenshot of the DataRails product showing the Collection Management feature with some workflows and commenting options.

    Similar to Datarails but not limited to MS Excel, Cube is a spreadsheet-native FP&A platform that helps businesses and finance teams streamline financial forecasting, workflow management and budgeting operations.

    Price: 

    $$ 

    Best for: 

    Small and mid-sized companies

    Pros:
    • Familiar UI which makes it easy to learn

    • Native Google Sheets integrations

    • No custom formulas needed

    Cons:
    • Lack of flexibility in Excel reporting

    • Reports require heavy formatting to be presentable

    • Multidimensional analysis capabilities are limited to 8 top-line dimensions

    • Drill-down capabilities are limited to the summary-level

    • Not intuitive for non-finance users

    Key financial modeling features in Cube:
    • Customizable dashboards

    • Automated workflows

    • Source systems integrations

    • Scenario modeling

    Cube product page powered by Flatfile showing the "Upload your conversion rates" page

    Vena was developed mainly for Microsoft 365 and comes with Power BI embedded to enhance its functionality with native Excel. It is meant to be an off-the-shelf solution for users who prefer to use spreadsheets—Excel is at the core of Vena—but whose FP&A needs are more complex than what can be managed with spreadsheets alone.

    Price: 

    $$ 

    Best for: 

    Mid-market

    Pros:
    • Contains a centralized database and metrics

    • Offers editing control on spreadsheets and templates

    • Workforce planning features

    • Data sharing via ad-hoc report builder

    • Compatible Excel interface

    Cons:
    • Reported glitches during set-up and installation

    • Relatively high learning curve

    • Not self-service oriented—users have reported needing external system integrator or IT help with integrations, reporting and template setup

    • Long implementation times (in excess of 2 months and often beyond 4 months)

    • Cash flow modeling capabilities limited

    Key financial modeling features in Vena:
    • Forecasting - forecast types and rolling forecasts

    • What-if modeling and statistical analysis

    • Capital asset planning and cash management

    • Version control

    Vena product screenshot showing the status tracker for 2020 annual budget.

    Similar to other types of financial modeling software, Mosaic automates different financial operations to streamline workflows. Its main strength lies in consolidating and transforming insights into accessible visuals often required by the management and other stakeholders. It can be regarded as more of a financial-BI tool than a comprehensive FP&A solution.

    Price: 

    $$ 

    Best for: 

    SMB to Mid-market

    Pros:
    • Workflows and collaboration

    • Analytical capabilities

    • Easy-to-navigate UI

    Cons:
    • Model creation is rigid (highly inflexible) and highly templated

    • Graphs and charts cannot be customized

    • Doesn’t handle rollups well

    • Doesn’t support weekly reporting

    • Many users complain of limited and difficult to setup access controls

    Key financial modeling features in Mosaic:
    • Financial analysis and modeling

    • Collaborative budgeting

    • Data visualization

    • Custom metrics

    • Cross-functional insights

    Workday Adaptive Planning is an FP&A tool targeted at finance teams and users who wish to move away from spreadsheets to an enterprise planning solution. While it is not purpose-built for SaaS, it does include modeling features suitable for SaaS businesses.

    Price: 

     $$-$$$

    Best for: 

    Mid-market

    Pros:
    • Good financial close and consolidation capabilities

    • Access real-time analytics and insights

    • Powerful business modeling

    • Easy-to-use reporting

    Cons:
    • Unclear pricing plan with limited options (final costs unknown)

    • Limited number of native integrations

    • Difficult to run reporting on one entity (only runs in consolidation)

    • Reports cannot be modified without creating a new report

    • Enterprise focus adds many features that are not required by SMBs

    Key financial modeling features in Workday:
    • Annual planning and budget planning

    • Financial analytics

    • Rolling financial forecasts

    • Financial modeling

    Workday product screenshot showing a top down plan with the Revenue Targets tab highlighted. It contains a table for revenue targets by departments, a chart showing revenue targets by region, a pie chart of the revenue share by various regions and a scorecard showing the annual target

    Drivetrain vs. the field: Why Drivetrain is the best financial modeling software for your SaaS business

    In the earlier sections, we detailed the features along with the pros and cons of the 6 best financial modeling software tools on the market today. While this is intended to help you choose the one that fits your business requirements, at a high level, there are a couple of additional features that are critical to ensure a successful modeling effort in your business. 

    Amy financial modeling software you choose should:

    1. Provide real-time visibility into current business performance by centralizing financial/business data and plans to manage and analyze the information more efficiently.
    1. Enable stakeholders (both internal and external) to collaborate on plans and data, analyze and identify bottlenecks, and make amendments as needed to achieve their business goals.

    Given these filters, Drivetrain stands out as a simple and intuitive platform for first-time users and finance teams, which can be used for building simple to highly complex financial models easily, modeling different scenarios and conducting what-if analysis, and creating flexible rolling budgets.

    Drivetrain can be considered as the go-to financial modeling software as it not only provides a highly sophisticated and powerful calculation engine, but also offers the familiarity and ease of Excel spreadsheets through its user-friendly interface. Powerful, yet simple. That’s Drivetrain.

    See how Drivetrain can accelerate your financial modeling process

    Book a Demo

    How to choose the right financial modeling software for your business

    The software you choose should provide robust forecasting capabilities, allowing you to model different scenarios and assess the potential impact of various decisions on your financial performance.

    What is financial modeling and why is it needed?

    Financial modeling is the creation of models to represent the potential performance of a company. The most basic type is the three-statement model, which links the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement.

    The top 6 key benefits of a financial modeling software

    Choosing the right financial modeling software for your company is a big decision. The ability to create accurate, reliable models that explore multiple scenarios is critical because some pretty big decisions are dependent on your results. 

    SaaS businesses have their own unique challenges and nuances, making it all the more important for entrepreneurs and CFOs to choose and work with the right financial modeling software. In this regard, a third generation FP&A platform—a strategic finance platform purpose-built for SaaS businesses—will provide powerful, value-added benefits.

    1. Automated data consolidation 

    Most modern FP&A platforms can streamline the consolidation of your financial and business data (without IT support) and help you track all key metrics in one place. This saves you the trouble of manually pulling and reconciling from different sources. Further, the ability to integrate with source systems eliminates the need for manual entry of data (and the resulting errors)—making it more time and effort friendly.

    2. Real-time visibility 

    You should be able to review your business performance with streamlined real-time/on-demand reporting—via multi-source data consolidation—for the entire organization. The tool should allow you to easily view and update your models with a click of a button and allow you to share the results with those that need to see them.  

    3. More accurate forecasts

    FP&A tools help in accurately forecasting future revenues—by shortening budgeting/planning cycles, improving cost control, aligning your teams, and boosting productivity. Overall, this feature enables better resource allocation and strategic planning.

    4. Model maintainability

    This feature helps replace multiple spreadsheets. Therefore, it becomes easier to scale and keep track of business models without worrying about its maintenance. Issues occur when unwieldy spreadsheets cause version control issues, copy-paste errors, formula syntax errors, wrong cell references, access control issues, and collaboration difficulties (among others).

    5. Better, more informed decision-making

    By providing insights into key financial metrics and performance indicators, financial modeling software provides SaaS companies with data-driven insights, leading to more informed and effective decision-making. These include decisions related to pricing strategies, customer acquisition, expansion plans, and resource allocation. 

    6. Scalability

    As SaaS companies grow and evolve, their financial modeling needs become more complex. Financial modeling software offers scalability that spreadsheets simply cannot match, allowing SaaS companies to adapt their models to changing business dynamics, market conditions, and growth trajectories without significant manual effort or disruption.


    What are the different types of financial modeling tools and software in SaaS?

    While most CFOs and finance teams continue to rely on the familiarity of spreadsheets to create the models they need to inform their planning, the limitations inherent in spreadsheets for FP&A can significantly impact the reliability of model results. 

    Everything, all the data and formulas, have to be entered into a spreadsheet manually, which makes them highly prone to error. Model inputs can change, too, which requires the finance team to verify the data often, which is always a manual, time-consuming task when using spreadsheets. 

    In addition, different departments tend to use their own models and spreadsheets to develop their budgets. Reconciling these department-level budgets to create an overall budget that everyone can agree on can take a long time. By the time you’re done, there is also no easy way to be certain that none of those numbers have changed in the meantime. 

    Looking for solutions to these fundamental issues resulted in creating what is known as modern FP&A software (i.e., strategic finance software) and continues to drive its evolution. 

    Our feature comparisons here indicate the maturity of each of these tools in terms of the degree to which each solution relies on spreadsheets:

    Source: Adapted from FP&A software classifications developed by Paul Barnhurst (The FP&A Guy).

    As compared to spreadsheetsDrivetrainDatarailsCubeVenaMosaicWorkday Adaptive Planning
    Web application that replaces spreadsheets
    Web application that integrates with spreadsheets
    Application uses a spreadsheet for calculations
    Add-in for spreadsheet applications

    The accuracy and speed of our workflows are significantly higher with Drivetrain. We don't have to wait for a quarter or month-end to capture performance.— Rahul Kumar, VP of Finance and Business Strategy, FarEye

    Real-world use cases for a financial modeling software like Drivetrain

    FarEye, established in 2013, is an intelligent delivery management platform that simplifies complex last-mile logistics. The business finance team at FarEye was tasked with measuring company performance and providing stakeholders insights into growth. 

    To accomplish this, every month, the team had to export data from different systems and sources, such as NetSuite, Salesforce, and multiple spreadsheets. Then the team had to manually stitch together the data from each source to create the reports and generate the required insights. The entire process was time-intensive, heavily manual, and prone to errors—even after double- and triple-checking the numbers. Further, they could not input complex assumptions in a spreadsheet. As a result, the workflow was becoming extremely arduous and inflexible. 

    Due to these manual processes and inflexible workflows, the team could only share reports with the stakeholders at defined intervals, which did not always align with organizational objectives.

    This is where Drivetrain stepped in. With Drivetrain, FarEye was able to centralize MIS data, ensure faster workflows and maintain higher projection accuracy

    Drivetrain's first task was integrating FarEye's disparate data sources onto a single platform. By centralizing FarEye's MIS data, the business finance team could rely on a stream of real-time insights into company performance. Drivetrain's ability to automate large portions of FarEye's business finance workflows also increased projection accuracy. 

    Given Drivetrain’s deep expertise in B2B business models, together with SaaS, Drivetrain’s customer success team was able to meet all of FarEye’s financial modeling requirements, share best practices, and guide FarEye teams on how to model their different use cases to gain the actionable insights and reports they needed.

    As a result, with Drivetrain, FarEye's Business Finance team can now deliver insightful reports to stakeholders using real-time data with the granularity necessary to facilitate agile, data-driven  decision-making. Instead of worrying about incorrect formulas or typing errors, team members can easily drill down into the data, roll-up projections, and change assumptions as needed.

    See how Drivetrain can accelerate your financial modeling process

    Book a Demo

    Features

    1. Native Integrations

    At the top of our list of core features for any financial modeling software is fast and seamless integrations with all the systems containing source data for your modeling process. 

    Integration with source systems eliminates the need for manual entry of data (and the resulting errors), thereby making more time and effort friendly. 

    For example, the 200+ native data connectors that Drivetrain offers pull in financial and business data from various business systems with ETL processes that make the data useful and accessible in real time. An important part of the ETL is mapping and classification. Drivetrain helps with automatic data mapping across ERP, CRM, HRIS, and billing systems, including custom fields.

    This creates a single source of truth with reliable, business-ready data that users can sync on demand (e.g., every hour or once a day) to directly manipulate, analyze, and derive timely insights. It also ensures your model is always based on the most current financial information.

    Software/
    Platform
    DrivetrainDatarailsCubeVenaMosaicWorkday Adaptive Planning
    Native integrations with top 6 ERPs
    Native integrations with top CRM, HRIS, Billing & BI tools
    Integration with Excel and Google Sheets
    Excel/CSV
    upload
    download

    2. Real-time, automated multi-dimensional reporting

    Dimensions are attributes of metrics by which you can view, break down and compare to better understand your business. This involves grouping/filtering different dimensions (e.g., expansion revenue by region, market segment, product, channel, etc.). You can also compare time dimensions (e.g., past period vs. present period) or different scenarios (e.g., best case vs. base case). 

    This process of comparing different dimensions in your business is known as multi-dimensional analysis or modeling – a very powerful capability you’ll want to look for in a financial modeling software.  

    Multi-dimensional analysis and reporting enable informed and decisive leadership, with full visibility and actionable insights into business financial and operations activity. Multi-dimensional analysis is key to uncovering problem areas, risks, and opportunities. It adds clarity and broad context, so leaders can intelligently navigate the business towards the future.

    A financial modeling software supporting multi-dimensional reporting essentially means getting access to real-time deeper data to answer second-/ third-order questions and also derive “hard-to-get” insights.

    Software/
    Platform
    DrivetrainDatarailsCubeVenaMosaicWorkday Adaptive Planning
    Drill Down to Transaction-Level
    Drill Down by Any Dimension
    Global- and Report-Level Filters

    Automated 3-Way Financial Statements

    Text Callouts/Notes in Dashboards

    Reporting templates
    unknown

    3. Predictive forecasting

    Predictive forecasting is one of the most important features a business needs in financial modeling software.

    Cash flow forecasting capabilities are especially important for SaaS companies to ensure liquidity and sufficient funds to pay for its day-to-day operations and support growth initiatives. Cash flow forecasting enables proactive management of cash resources, anticipating funding needs, and avoiding a cash flow crisis.

    The functionality to forecast cash flows accurately by considering both revenue and expense projections, timing of cash inflows and outflows, capital expenditures, debt repayments, and other financial activities is critical.

    A key part of predictive forecasting is being able to access historical data in real-time, use various types of forecasting methods (preferably already built-in in the tool) and quickly change assumptions for creating these forecasts without having to alt-tab on multiple different pages or spreadsheets

    Software/
    Platform
    DrivetrainDatarailsCubeVenaMosaicWorkday Adaptive Planning
    Rolling forecast

    Driver based forecasting

    Pre-configured forecast methods

    unknown

    4. Scenario analysis

    Uncertainty is a fact of life for any business. The ability to conduct scenario planning and what-if analysis in real time is critical for SaaS CFOs to evaluate the impact of different scenarios on their budgets and enables more informed and proactive decision-making.

    Software/
    Platform
    DrivetrainDatarailsCubeVenaMosaicWorkday Adaptive Planning
    Sensitivity Analysis

    unknown
    unknown
    unknown
    What-if Analysis
    Unlimited Scenarios

    Multiple Scenario Planning

    5. Customizable templates

    Of course, any financial modeling tool should allow businesses to create models from scratch. However, the best options will be those that also offer templates to speed up the process. 

    Modeling templates are very helpful in modeling because they can significantly accelerate the time-to-value and ultimately the ROI of whatever financial modeling software you choose. However, all templates are not created equal. 

    SaaS businesses often have unique business models, pricing strategies, and growth trajectories, which makes one-size-fits all templates marginally useful at best. When evaluating financial modeling software it’s a good idea to take a close look at the templates provided to determine if they will suit your needs and if not, how easy it will be to customize them. 

    The best templates, such as those Drivetrain provides, incorporate modeling best practices and are flexible enough to accommodate all the unique characteristics of your business model. With Drivetrain templates, you can customize assumptions, inputs, and formulas according to your specific requirements, industry-specific nuances, and changing market conditions.

    Software/
    Platform
    DrivetrainDatarailsCubeVenaMosaicWorkday Adaptive Planning
    Templates by business maturity
    Templates by business maturity
    unknown
    unknown

    6. Dynamic Dashboards

    Visualizing key financial metrics and performance indicators helps in monitoring progress, identifying trends, and communicating the business's financial health effectively. 

    When on the lookout for SaaS financial modeling software to measure your business performance, consider software platforms that offer interactive dashboards with enriched reporting features for presenting financial data, including budgets, variances, scenarios, etc. for faster, more informed decision-making.

    Software/
    Platform
    DrivetrainDatarailsCubeVenaMosaicWorkday Adaptive Planning
    Drill Down to Transaction-Level

    Drill Down by Any Dimension

    Global- and Chart-Level Filters

    Automated 3-Way Financial Statements

    Text Callouts/Notes in Dashboards

    Reporting templates

    7. Multidimensional Modeling

    Financial planning involves many moving parts and several variables (beyond financial figures). This is why selecting software that allows you to create multi-dimensional financial models, reports, and dashboards that meet your specific needs is vital.

    You should be able to tailor inputs, calculations, and outputs as per your organization's unique requirements. Most importantly, you should be able to model at the speed and dimensionality of your business operations.

    Software/
    Platform
    DrivetrainDatarailsCubeVenaMosaicWorkday Adaptive Planning
    In-Memory Multidimensional Calculation Engine
    Rolling Budget
    Real-time view of Forecast and Budget vs. Actuals
    Unlimited Planning Window (long range planning)
    Multi Subsidiary Consolidation
    Natural Language Formulas
    Driver Based Budgeting and Forecasting
    Multiple Scenario Planning
    Model Templates

    8. Onboarding, Training and Customer Success

    There’s always a learning curve with any new tool. However, a great onboarding experience can help your teams adopt the product quickly and leverage it to its full potential. An in-house implementation team, interactive walkthroughs, self-service support, and quick customer service will ensure your questions are resolved in a timely manner that will reduce your time to value.

    Software/
    Platform
    DrivetrainDatarailsCubeVenaMosaicWorkday Adaptive Planning
    Implementation time
    4-6 weeks
    unknown
    > 2 months
    >2 months
    >2 months
    > 4 months
    In-house implementation
    Yes
    unknown
    unknown
    No
    unknown
    No
    White-glove onboarding
    Self-service management (admin)
    Dedicated customer support/success

    FAQ

    1. Is there a difference between business financial modeling and SaaS financial modeling?

    Financial modeling is a process of creating a mathematical representation of a company's financial situation. This process involves using various financial data, including financial statements, balance sheets, and cash flows along with other relevant information to create a model that finance teams and businesses make better financial decisions. Financial models are often built using spreadsheets.

    SaaS financial modeling is a specific type of financial modeling. It is the process of charting a summary of the expenses and revenues of your SaaS business. It typically includes present and future revenue forecasts and important KPIs that your company's finance leader should consider and track on a routine basis.  

    At times, traditional financial models may also include these elements for a single product revenue projection. In SaaS businesses, however, the financial model must factor in the complexities of recurring revenue that comes in with subscriptions, customer churn, and its impact on predicting future revenue.

    2. What is the importance of a SaaS financial model?

    A robust SaaS financial model can enable finance leaders to leverage data-driven insights to shape business strategy and chart the growth path for their company.

    SaaS financial models are important for both startups and established businesses as it helps in determining its financial health, through: 

    • Financial planning: SaaS financial models are effective tools for financial planning as they give you a better understanding of your company’s financial stability and hindrances in your financial plan.
    • Resource allocation: Financial modeling helps SaaS businesses allocate resources more efficiently, which can help reduce your costs and increase profitability.
    • Service pricing: Financial models provide a better understanding of the costs incurred to acquire and provide services to customers. They also provide insights about the lifetime value of a customer. This, in turn, enables you to estimate and adjust the pricing and subscription cost of your services.
    • Business planning: SaaS financial modeling can uncover inefficiencies in your business plan, giving you the opportunity to improve operational efficiency and profitability.

    3. What is the difference between financial model spreadsheets and financial modeling software?

    Financial model spreadsheets: Typically, these are Excel spreadsheets created by an FP&A professional.  FP&A teams have to manually consolidate, input, and analyze the data to create financial modeling spreadsheets. This is time-consuming and prone to errors. 

    Financial modeling software: Financial modeling software (also known as financial model builders) are tools/platforms that make financial modeling more efficient and less resource-consuming. 

    This software is typically a software or platform that helps analyze a company’s business performance against the projected targets, evaluate the implications, and arrive at insights and solutions to get it back on track. 

    Since the processes are mostly automated, these tools significantly reduce the risk of human error and save a lot of time in model development and maintenance. Further, the use of good-looking visuals (graphs and charts) on patterns and trends helps facilitate decision-making.

    Discover how Drivetrain is leading the way for SaaS financial modeling

    Talk to an Expert
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    Top 13 Financial Modeling Software for Your SaaS Business in 2025

    Find the right financial modeling software to understand your company’s financial performance and make projections.

    Talk to an FP&A Expert
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    Most companies conduct some kind of financial planning or budgeting exercises to forecast the performance of their products and business as a whole. Financial modeling is an essential part of this process, as it guides strategic and future planning, enabling informed decision-making.

    With competitors moving faster, resources getting leaner, and boardrooms demanding sharper answers, the need for data-driven and insightful decision-making has never been greater. The pace of AI and big data developments makes data-driven decision making easy and accessible for businesses. Financial planning and modeling help CFOs and businesses navigate the uncertainties in the current market and drive sustainable growth.

    In this guide, we have detailed thirteen of the best SaaS financial modeling software platforms on the market in 2025. To cover the broadest range of possible needs, we’ve broken these tools out into three categories based on the needs of the market sector they target with their solution:

    • Enterprise, which is defined as 1000 employees and/or more than $100M ARR
    • Mid-market businesses defined as 50-1000 employees, and/or $5-$100M ARR
    • Small businesses, defined as 0-50 employees with lesser than $5M ARR

    For this updated guide, we reviewed five solutions each for enterprise and mid-market categories and another four for small businesses and startups.

    We consulted a wide range of sources including vendor websites and product documentation, independent software review platforms, customer testimonials and reviews, and third-party analyst reports.

    For each solution, you’ll find a summary of the key features related to financial modeling that it offers and some of the pros and cons you might want to consider as you evaluate your options.

    We’ve also included in a new discussion about how AI is being incorporated into the CFO and finance functions today. For this, we highlight four solutions that are leading the way forward with AI in how they are incorporating it into their platforms to enhance their financial modeling and other functions. This information will benefit CFOs and others working in corporate FP&A who want to leverage the power of AI to streamline their work and improve financial performance.

    The best financial modeling solutions for enterprises

    Enterprises require financial modeling solutions that scale with their complex organizational structures while providing accuracy and actionable insights.

    While evaluating options, begin with total cost of ownership (TCO), which extends beyond the initial price point to include implementation, support, and long-term ownership costs. An important factor to consider is onboarding timelines and how short or long the time to value or ROI is.

    Key features to consider include integration capabilities with existing ERP and business applications to maintain data consistency and eliminate manual reconciliation processes. Multi-dimensional modeling enables finance teams to analyze performance across products, regions, and time periods simultaneously. The emergence of AI-enabled modeling features has improved forecasting accuracy and scenario planning capabilities for forward-looking enterprises.

    Multi-currency support is non-negotiable for global operations, while collaboration features with fine-grained access controls enable secure stakeholder involvement. Despite these advanced capabilities, ease of use remains critical, financial modeling platforms must strike a balance between sophisticated functionality and intuitive UI, accessible to finance professionals.

    In this guide we have focused on the five financial modeling solutions suitable for enterprise businesses: Drivetrain, Anaplan, Workday Adaptive Planning, Oracle Cloud Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) Planning, and Pigment. The table below offers a comparison of how they stack up in terms of the key features that make them suitable for enterprise-level financial modeling.

    Software/
    Platform
    Drivetrain's logoLogo of Workday Adaptive Planning softwareLogo of Pigment software
    Price
    $$
    $$$$
    $$$
    $$$$
    $$$
    G2 ratings
    4.8
    4.6
    4.3
    4.1
    4.6
    Time for Implemen-tation
    4-6 weeks
    4-6 months
    3-5 months
    5-8 months
    3-4 months
    Total cost of ownership
    Low
    High
    Medium
    High
    Medium
    Integration with ERP systems & financial systems
    800+
    50-60
    80+
    60-100
    30-40
    Multi-dimensional modeling
    AI-enabled modeling
    Multi-curreny support
    Collaborations with fine-grained access control
    Ease of use
    Time to ROI (from G2)
    6 months
    17 months
    22 months
    24 months
    15 months

    Drivetrain is a powerful, built-for-B2B strategic finance software. A relative newcomer compared to most of its competitors in the enterprise market, Drivetrain is a comprehensive financial planning and analysis (FP&A) solution offering all the key modeling features enterprises need today. 

    A key differentiator is Drivetrain's quick in-house onboarding, which does not require hiring third-party consultants, significantly reducing the time to value that typically accompanies enterprise financial modeling solutions. The platform's intuitive interface and the ability to model with plain-English formulas enable finance teams to begin building complex models from day one. With 800+ native integrations, you can incorporate data from across the entire enterprise into your modeling process.

    The platform's multi-dimensional modeling engine supports a wide range of financial reporting requirements for enterprises. These include multi-entity consolidations, complex elimination entries, and intercompany transactions. The system also handles multi-currency reporting with automated translations and manages foreign exchange (FX) gains and losses. All these features are critical for reporting across different accounting standards and jurisdictions.

    Drivetrain's collaborative features and granular access controls encourage secure cross-functional collaboration. The platform's AI-enabled modeling capabilities set a new standard for financial forecasting with automated scenario generation and predictive analytics to help organizations identify opportunities and risks that might otherwise go unnoticed in traditional financial modeling approaches.

    Pros:
    • G2 Award-winning support team

    • AI-enabled forecasting

    • Marries data from multiple source systems natively

    • Self-serve reporting and interactive dashboards

    • Multi-currency and entity support

    • Highly intuitive UI

    Cons:
    • Heavily focused on B2B businesses

    Key financial modeling features in Drivetrain:
    • Multi-dimensional modeling capabilities

    • Real-time rolling budgets and forecasts vs. actuals

    • Data visualization with drill-down capabilities

    • Custom metric builder

    • Scenario planning and what-If analysis

    Financial Modeling with Drivetrain

    Anaplan provides a comprehensive enterprise modeling platform with its proprietary Hyperblock technology forming the foundation of its multi-dimensional modeling capabilities. These technical capabilities are particularly relevant for financial modeling as they enable the handling of large-scale, interconnected models.

    The platform's enterprise-grade security and collaboration features support complex organizational structures and workflows, which is essential for financial modeling in large organizations. However, the solution's implementation timeline typically extends to several months, and the TCO increases with the need for specialized expertise to build and maintain models.

    A significant consideration, as mentioned on G2 by users, is the lack of native integrations and a complex user interface, which results in a longer time to value and decreased ROI. While the platform includes some predictive capabilities, its AI functionality is limited to basic forecasting. It lacks advanced scenario generation and pattern recognition; both critical for identifying anomalies that could signal risks, outliers, or hidden growth levers in financial models. Without these, decision-makers are flying blind to what the data isn’t explicitly saying.

    Pros:
    • High scalability

    • Customizable cash flow models

    • Support for multiple currency translations and eliminations

    • Available in multiple languages

    Cons:
    • Complex pricing model

    • Steep learning curve

    • Long implementation times

    • Lack of native integrations

    Key financial modeling features in Anaplan:
    • Driver-based forecasting

    • Allows real-time forecasting adjustments

    • Scenario planning capabilities, including what-if scenario analysis

    • Comprehensive reporting tools

    Financial Modeling with Anaplan

    Workday Adaptive Planning is a cloud-based corporate performance management software designed for enterprise-level companies. As its name suggests, Workday Adaptive Planning offers tools for budgeting, forecasting, and modeling to help businesses plan more efficiently.

    The platform's implementation timeline falls in the mid-range for enterprise solutions, typically requiring two to three months to deploy. While the total cost of ownership is moderate compared to traditional enterprise solutions, organizations should account for implementation and training costs. The solution's multi-currency support is comprehensive, which is essential for organizations operating across multiple regions.

    While the platform offers standard collaboration features, its modeling capabilities are more suited to conventional financial planning approaches rather than complex, multi-dimensional analysis. Some users forewarn of a steep learning curve with expensive consultations required to train users about the products.

    Pros:
    • Not dependent on MS Excel but offers a familiar, Excel-like UI

    • Good customization capabilities

    • Self-service reporting with interactive dashboards

    • Comprehensive scenario planning and what-if functionality. 

    Cons:
    • Limited integrations

    • Heavy dependence on third party system integrators

    • Steep learning curve

    • Complex configuration required to build financial models

    Key financial modeling features in Workday Adaptive Planning:
    • Scenario modeling, including what-if analyses

    • Driver-based expense planning

    • Rolling financial forecasts

    • Ability to build annual plans using real-time, enterprise-wide data

    Financial Modeling with Workday Adaptive Planning

    Oracle Cloud EPM Planning 

    Oracle Cloud EPM Planning provides substantial multi-dimensional modeling capabilities, especially beneficial for organizations already invested in the Oracle ecosystem. 

    The platform offers multi-dimensional analysis features that allow users to drill down into their data in different ways. The two-way integration with Excel provides read/write capabilities for users who still work in and want the familiarity of spreadsheets.

    Like other long-established financial modeling vendors in the enterprise space, Oracle Cloud EPM Planning users struggle with its inherent complexity, which leads to long implementation times and requires extensive training for staff to use it effectively.

    Pros:
    • Drill-down capabilities to transaction details

    • Robust features for enterprises with complex business models

    • Well suited for companies with existing investments in Oracle solutions

    Cons:
    • Integrations can be difficult to mange

    • Lengthy implementation times with heavy dependence on third-party systems integrators

    • Complex pricing model

    • Importing and exporting data manually is complicated

    • Frequent mandatory updates, which can sometimes cause workflow disruptions

    Key financial modeling features in Oracle Cloud EPM Planning:
    • Multi-entity scenario modeling and what-if analyses

    • Predictive modeling

    • Multi-entity management

    Financial Modeling with Oracle

    Pigment targets both mid-sized businesses and enterprises. However, it is best suited for large enterprises that require advanced modeling capabilities to support intricate financial modeling processes.

    Pigment offers scenario planning capabilities, including strong what-if analysis to help enterprises make informed decisions. However, its formula logic comes with a steep learning curve, which can make building complex models difficult and delay time to value. Reviewers on Gartner forewarn that “It will take a technical person (who is SQL savvy) probably 5 months to get up to speed on syntax but a typical FP&A person, maybe 12 months depending on their capability”.

    Pigment offers a flexible modeling environment. Yet, its multi-dimensional planning capabilities are somewhat limited in their ability to handle complex hierarchies. Pigment also offers predictive forecasting, but its advanced statistical modeling capabilities fall short compared to more mature platforms because they require manual validation of forecasting assumptions. 

    Pros:
    • Real-time calculation engine with immediate updates across all connected data

    • Complex formula capabilities

    • Modern, intuitive user interface with strong visualization tools

    • Flexible but somewhat limited multi-dimensional modeling

    • Good performance with large datasets

    Cons:
    • Steep learning curve

    • Implementation requires significant initial data model setup (2-3 months typical)

    • Basic security and permission features compared to other enterprise solutions

    • Complex implementations require dedicated project team involvement

    • May require more technical expertise for advanced modeling

    Key financial modeling features in Pigment:
    • Rolling forecasts 

    • Scenario planning and what-if analysis

    • Multi-currency support and basic consolidation features

    • Budget vs. actual analysis

    • Driver-based modeling capabilities

    Financial Modeling with Pigment

    The best financial modeling software for mid-market companies

    Mid-market businesses face a unique challenge in choosing financial modeling software. Having revenue between $5M and $100M, these companies need more sophisticated modeling capabilities than spreadsheets can provide but often find enterprise solutions too complex and expensive.

    The ideal mid-market financial modeling solution combines multi-dimensional modeling, multi-currency capabilities, and AI-driven forecasting. Role-based access controls and integration with common ERP and business systems are essential features, but they need to be accessible without hiring expensive third-party consultants or lengthy implementation timelines.

    In this section, we cover five financial modeling solutions with features that meet many of these and other needs of mid-market businesses. They are Drivetrain, Datarails, Mosaic, Cube, and Planful. The table below offers a quick comparison of their relative strengths and weaknesses in terms of the modeling capabilities for mid-market businesses. Below the table, you’ll find a detailed description of each solution to help you better evaluate them for your unique business.

    Software/
    Platform
    Drivetrain's logo
    Price
    $$
    $$
    $$$
    $$
    $$$
    G2 ratings
    4.8
    4.6
    4.7
    4.5
    4.3
    Number of dimensions supported for reporting/ modeling
    Unlimited
    Unlimited
    Unlimited
    8
    8
    Integration with ERP systems & financial systems
    800+
    20+
    50+
    40+
    100+
    Multi-scenario modeling
    Multi-currency support
    AI-powered modeling
    Role-based access control
    Modeling Flexibility
    High
    Low
    Low
    Low
    Low

    Topping our list for mid-market businesses, Drivetrain is one of the best and few strategic finance software, purpose-built for B2B companies. It is a robust financial modeling solution with a suite of features designed to enhance visibility into the financial health of businesses. 

    The platform's advanced scenario modeling capabilities enable finance teams to create unlimited what-if analyses, providing deep insights into potential business outcomes. This is important for financial modeling because it allows mid-market businesses to make data-driven decisions with greater confidence and adapt more quickly to changing market conditions.

    One of Drivetrain's key differentiators is its fast implementation, which has most businesses up and running on the platform in just 4-6 weeks. Drivetrain’s intuitive user interface and pre-built templates further accelerate time-to-value. In the context of financial modeling, this means companies can start benefiting from sophisticated forecasting and planning capabilities sooner without straining their resources.

    Drivetrain's extensive integration capabilities ensure seamless data flow from virtually any financial software a mid-market business might use and real-time updates to financial models. Combined with its powerful AI-driven analytics and granular role-based access controls, Drivetrain provides a comprehensive solution that scales with growing businesses. These features are particularly important for mid-market companies that can benefit from enterprise-grade capabilities without the associated complexity and cost.

    Pros:
    • Customizable forecasting models including driver-based modeling

    • 3-statement modeling capabilities

    • Automated reporting and ad-hoc reporting tools

    • Best-of-breed reporting templates

    • Unparalleled customer support

    • Seamless and intuitive UI

    Cons:
    • Heavily focused on B2B businesses

    Key financial modeling features in Drivetrain for mid-market businesses:
    • Simple-to-use yet powerful financial modeling capabilities including multi-dimensional modeling

    • Real-time updates to all models

    • Real-time variance analysis

    • Ability to drill-down into forecast and budget vs. actuals

    • Dynamic scenario planning and what-if analysis

    • Rolling budgets and forecasts and predictive forecasting capabilities

    • Collaboration features, including fine-grained role-based access controls and version control

    Financial Modeling with Drivetrain

    Datarails

    Datarails is an Excel-based plugin that allows businesses to save their spreadsheet data into a database to extend Excel’s capabilities.

    Datarails offers a range of features required by mid-market businesses for financial modeling while also enabling them to retain their Excel-based workflows. This approach keeps the learning process and implementation short compared to those modeling solutions that demand total changes in workflows.

    Datarails provides pre-built templates that can help simplify and standardize modeling processes. It also provides rolling forecasting and basic driver-based planning capabilities. While it also includes scenario analysis features, these and the forecasting features are more labor-intensive to set up and maintain than with some of the other solutions discussed here.

    While Datarails offers customizable KPIs and collaborative features suitable for mid-market businesses, these capabilities are relatively basic.

    Pros:
    • Familiar Excel interface

    • Uses AI to surface results from plain English queries

    Cons:
    • Works only with Excel, not Google Sheets

    • Few customization options

    • Limited visualization capabilities, particularly for complex analyses

    • Lacks functionality needed for advanced modeling

    • Even simple models require 100s of formulas

    • Limited access controls

    Key financial modeling features in Datarails:
    • Budgeting and forecasting

    • Scenario modeling

    • Financial reporting

    Financial Modeling with Datarails

    Mosaic is a cloud-based FP&A platform founded in 2019 with a focus on supporting collaborative planning and consolidating data across ERP, CRM, and HR systems. In February 2025, Mosaic was acquired by Hibob, a platform that serves the HR needs of mid-market businesses.

    While we could have eliminated it from this guide, we decided to include our evaluation of its modeling capabilities here to help its current customers perhaps find a suitable alternative, by comparing what they have in Mosaic now with the other options discussed here.

    The tool provides standard modeling capabilities with straightforward scenario analysis tools, making it suitable for basic to intermediate financial planning needs. In terms of financial modeling, this means sufficient support for usual forecasting and budgeting activities, but more sophisticated demands may require secondary solutions.

    The platform's standard role-based access control and basic multi-currency support provide core functionality for mid-market companies, but may not fully address the needs of rapidly growing organizations or those with complex international operations. Lack of customization and rigidity of the platform are some of the most common complaints by Mosaic users.

    Pros:
    • Robust driver-based planning capabilities with real-time updates

    • KPI customization and tracking

    • Dynamic budget modeling with automatic calculations

    • Real-time variance analysis and tracking

    Cons:
    • Limited pre-built templates and models

    • Basic collaboration tools compared to competitors

    • Manual setup required for complex reporting

    • Implementation requires significant configuration

    • Some advanced features need custom development

    • Steeper learning curve for non-finance users

    • Limited workflow automation options

    Key financial modeling features in Mosaic:
    • Financial analysis and modeling

    • Collaborative budgeting

    • Data visualization

    • Custom metrics

    • Cross-functional insights

    Financial Modeling with Mosaic

    Mid-market companies seeking Excel-based financial modeling solutions will find that Cube offers a compelling balance of familiarity and enhanced capabilities. The platform extends Excel's functionality with cloud-based features and allows finance teams to maintain familiar workflows.

    Implementation typically takes 4-6 weeks, with Cube's Excel-native approach reducing the learning curve for finance teams. Cube provides essential mid-market modeling capabilities, including multi-currency support and role-based access controls for international operations. This makes Cube particularly suitable for mid-market companies prioritizing Excel compatibility and system integration over advanced modeling capability. However, some G2 reviews note that for fast-growing businesses, the lack of flexibility and scalability of the platform results in a lot of sunk time.

    Pros:
    • Native Google Sheets capability (not an add-in)

    • UI is simple and familiar to most users (in Excel format)

    • Strong Excel integration maintaining familiar workflows

    • Comprehensive library of pre-built models and templates

    • Solid rolling forecast functionality

    Cons:
    • Very limited number of integrations with some reported as being a bit clunky

    • Time consuming to update and fetch different reports

    • Large data sync can take more than an hour

    • Basic driver-based planning capabilities

    • Limited scenario analysis and what-if modeling

    • Basic collaboration tools

    • Limited real-time analysis capabilities

    Key financial modeling features in Cube:
    • Customizable dashboards

    • Automated workflows

    • Source systems integrations

    • Scenario modeling

    Financial Modeling with Cube

    Planful is a financial modeling platform that can be quite complex for mid-market implementation. The software's longer implementation timeline of 8-12 weeks minimum and higher total cost of ownership due to third-party implementation partners may present challenges for mid-market companies seeking faster onboarding and more flexible solutions.

    Its multi-currency support and access controls are comprehensive, though configuration of these features requires substantial technical expertise. Planful provides modeling features like multi-dimensional modeling, but is limited to only eight dimensions, forcing difficult choices about which business views to let go. It can also be difficult to use. As one user explained on Reddit, “It's less versatile for planning by vendor (or any dimension where you have a lot of individual lines). If you have very complicated revenue streams that require many pieces, it can be difficult to build and maintain those within Planful.”

    Pros:
    • Easily export model information from Planful to Excel

    • Beautiful UI that enables both regular and infrequent users

    Cons:
    • Limited dimensions supported

    • Lack of native integrations

    • Difficult to set up report templates

    • Steep learning curve

    • Long and expensive implementation by third-party consultants

    Key financial modeling features in Planful:
    • Rolling forecast functionality

    • Driver-based modeling capabilities

    • Pre-built templates for modeling

    Financial Modeling with Pigment

    The best financial modeling software for small businesses and startups

    Small businesses with revenues under $5M need financial modeling software that delivers immediate value without complexity. The focus is on essential capabilities: reliable cash flow forecasting, BvA analysis, and basic three-statement modeling that integrates seamlessly with existing tools like Excel or Google Sheets.

    For these organizations, the selection criteria are straightforward but critical. Implementation must be measured in days, not weeks, with out-of-the-box integrations. Price sensitivity is paramount, but so is the ability to create multiple scenarios for business planning.

    What sets successful small business financial modeling software apart is its ability to combine collaborative features and role-based access with practical tools for day-to-day financial management. These companies need solutions that can grow with them while remaining cost-effective and user-friendly, supporting better decision-making without requiring additional expertise.

    We evaluated several small business modeling solutions and found four that are well-suited to meet their needs and those of SaaS startups. They are Causal, Budgyt, Fathom, and Excel.

    In addition to their financial modeling capabilities, we’ve also evaluated the relative scalability of each software, which may be of particular interest to fast-growing SaaS companies looking for a solution they can grow with.

    Check out the table below for a quick summary of how each of the four solutions we evaluated compares, then you can start digging into the details.

    Software/
    Platform
    Price
    $
    $
    $
    $
    G2 ratings
    4.5
    4.2
    4.6
    4.5
    Out of box integrations
    20+
    10+
    50+
    Limited
    Implementation time (time to value)
    1-2 weeks
    3-5 days
    1-2 weeks
    Immediate
    Multi-scenario modeling
    BvA Analysis
    Cashflow forecasting
    3 statement modeling
    Integrations with Gsheet/Excel
    Collaboration & Role-based access

    Causal

    Causal is a financial modeling tool designed to streamline financial modeling and planning for small businesses. Users can create projections based on a range of variables and scenarios, making it accessible even for those with limited financial expertise.

    In October 2024, Causal was acquired by Lucanet, a company that offers financial performance management software for primarily mid-market companies with a focus on finance teams that need solutions for financial consolidation and financial planning, and financial reporting tools.

    For now, Causal appears to still be available to small businesses looking for an affordable, straightforward solution for their financial forecasting needs. However, according to one of Causal’s co-founders, Lukas Kobis, Causal will be shifting its focus to mid-market businesses in the future.

    Pros:
    • Strong integration with common startup tools (QuickBooks, Stripe, etc.)

    • Strong scenario planning and modeling capabilities

    • Quick implementation and minimal setup requirements

    • Built-in templates specifically designed for startup metrics and SaaS modeling

    • Clear visual representation of financial data

    Cons:
    • Advanced features have steeper learning curve

    • Limited expense categorization options with limited ability to customize

    • Basic template library for reporting with limited customization options

    Key financial modeling features in Causal:
    • Driver-based forecasting capabilities

    • Scenario modeling with real-time updates

    • Revenue and expense modeling

    • Bottom-up and top-down budgeting

    • Real-time budget updates with visual budget vs. actual analysis

    Financial Modeling with Causal

    Budgyt

    Budgyt is a modeling and forecasting platform that provides modeling and reporting tools that focus on simplifying financial modeling. It is designed to be a practical solution for small businesses transitioning from spreadsheet-based budgeting to more structured financial planning. 

    With its spreadsheet-like interface, Budgyt provides an easy transition for users who are familiar with Excel while at the same time, eliminating many of the limitations inherent in spreadsheets.

    As its name suggests, Budgyt’s features are strongly centered around budgeting rather than more sophisticated forecasting or scenario planning typically addressed by a more comprehensive FP&A software. However, it can be an ideal solution for companies focused on gaining better control of their financial planning without overcomplicating the process.

    Pros:
    • User-friendly interface requires minimal training

    • Affordable pricing structure for small businesses

    • Built-in approval workflows streamline planning process

    • Comprehensive expense categorization with detailed expense analysis

    • Extensive template library

    Cons:
    • Limited advanced modeling features

    • Limited scenario planning capabilities

    • Fewer integration options compared to competitors

    • Less sophisticated in handling complex revenue models

    • Limited customization options for growing businesses

    • Basic dashboard visualizations and reporting

    Key financial modeling features in Budgyt:
    • Standard financial reports and a custom report builder

    • Basic dashboard capabilities

    • Basic financial forecasting

    • Basic variance analysis, including budget vs. actuals

    • Detailed expense tracking

    Financial Modeling with Budgyt

    Fathom

    Fathom positions itself as a financial analysis and reporting platform with modeling capabilities focused on small to medium-sized businesses. 

    The platform suits businesses that have outgrown spreadsheet-based modeling but don't require the complexity of sophisticated modeling solutions. 

    Its focus on standardized reporting and analysis makes it particularly relevant for businesses seeking consistent financial insights without extensive model development.

    Pros:
    • Direct integration with major accounting platforms

    • Automated financial ratio analysis 

    • Standardized reporting templates

    • Visual KPI tracking capabilities

    • Quick implementation timeline (typically under a week)

    • Moderate learning curve compared to enterprise solutions

    Cons:
    • Limited custom modeling flexibility

    • Restricted to predefined analysis frameworks

    • Basic scenario planning capabilities

    • Dependent on accounting software integration

    • Limited advanced forecasting features

    • Fixed reporting structure with moderate customization

    Key financial modeling features in Fathom:
    • Standardized financial metrics and KPIs

    • Built-in ratio analysis tools

    • Template-based reporting framework

    • Automated data validation

    • Basic version tracking

    • Visual analytics tools

    Financial Modeling with Fathom

    Excel

    Excel provides an effective entry point for financial modeling with immediate usability for basic financial planning needs. For small businesses with straightforward modeling requirements and stable growth patterns, Excel's combination of accessibility and basic functionality meets core financial planning needs.

    However, as businesses scale or experience rapid growth, Excel's limitations become apparent. Manual data management, lack of automated scenario planning, and limited collaboration features increase friction and time sunk. 

    Growing businesses often find themselves building increasingly complex models that become difficult to maintain and prone to errors. The time spent managing and validating Excel models often increases exponentially with business complexity, creating a clear inflection point where more sophisticated tools become a necessity.

    Pros:
    • Low initial cost barrier

    • Immediate implementation with familiar interface

    • Flexible for basic modeling needs

    • Universal compatibility and sharing options

    Cons:
    • Manual data entry and maintenance burden

    • Limited multi-user collaboration capabilities

    • Prone to formula errors and version control issues

    • Lacks automated scenario management

    • Becomes unwieldy with complex models

    Key financial modeling features in Excel:
    • Basic scenario modeling through data tables and worksheet structures

    • Standard financial formulas and functions library

    • Template-based modeling capabilities

    • Manual data validation rules

    • Basic versioning through file management

    Financial Modeling with Excel
    See how Drivetrain can simplify & streamline financial modeling

    The 4 best AI-enabled software for business budgeting and planning

    Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming the world of financial modeling by significantly improving both data analysis capabilities and predictive modeling accuracy. Today's leading modeling platforms are leveraging AI in new and exciting ways to deliver more accurate financial models while at the same time making complex planning processes more accessible through intelligent interfaces and automated insights.

    The modeling solutions we reviewed incorporate sophisticated AI capabilities, including machine learning (ML) algorithms and natural language processing (NLP), to streamline model creation, tracking, and revision processes. These tools help finance teams move beyond traditional spreadsheet-based modeling to create more dynamic, responsive financial forecasts that adapt to changing business conditions.

    Each platform offers unique AI-powered approaches to modernize modeling workflows and improve accuracy in financial planning. Let's take a look at the different ways these solutions are leveraging AI to transform traditional financial modeling processes.


    Drive AI by Drivetrain

    Drive AI enhances Drivetrain's robust modeling capabilities with a suite of AI-powered tools that streamline financial model creation, monitoring, and adjustment processes. This suite includes AI Transforms, AI Analyst, Model Generation, and AI Alerts, each designed to simplify and accelerate the financial modeling workflow.

    One of the most time-consuming aspects of financial modeling is consolidating historical data to inform future forecasts. Gathering data from various sources and transforming it into a usable format for analysis can be incredibly time-consuming. However, Drive AI's Transforms feature automatically transforms complex financial datasets in seconds, converting historical financial data into useful parameters for sophisticated financial models.

    The platform's AI Analyst serves as a virtual modeling assistant, allowing users to query model performance and variances through natural language questions. Financial analysts can quickly understand forecast vs. actual comparisons, sensitivity analysis results, and potential areas for model adjustment without manual recalculations.

    The system's AI Alerts feature monitors financial model performance in real-time, automatically flagging significant variances and potential issues before they impact financial decisions. This proactive monitoring helps organizations maintain model accuracy and make timely adjustments when market conditions change.

    AI features to improve financial modeling:

    • Universal AI-assisted search feature for financial data points
    • AI-driven data transformations for model inputs
    • AI-enabled financial formulas
    • Anomaly detection and notification in financial models

    Anaplan Intelligence

    Anaplan Intelligence brings AI-powered innovation to traditional financial modeling processes through four integrated solutions that specifically address common modeling challenges: collaborative model creation, optimization, variance analysis, and forecasting. They are: CoPlanner, Optimizer, Predictive Insights, and PlanIQ.

    CoPlanner revolutionizes financial model collaboration by enabling natural language interactions with modeling data. Financial teams can quickly access model information, track sensitivity parameters, and identify potential optimization opportunities through simple queries. This feature is particularly valuable during model review cycles, allowing stakeholders to quickly understand and respond to model performance.

    The Optimizer component helps organizations make more strategic financial decisions within their models. Finance teams can set specific modeling goals (such as optimizing capital allocation or maximizing NPV) while accounting for various business constraints. The system then suggests optimal parameter distributions based on these inputs.

    Predictive Insights and PlanIQ work together to enhance model accuracy by analyzing historical financial patterns and business drivers to generate more accurate financial forecasts. These tools help organizations move beyond simple trend-based projections to create more nuanced, data-driven financial models that better reflect market realities.

    AI features to improve financial modeling:

    • Time series forecasting for financial projections
    • Automated insights for model optimization
    • Automated scenario building for sensitivity analysis

    Arc AI by Mosaic

    Arc AI transforms traditional financial modeling processes through intelligent automation and NLP. The platform enables financial analysts to quickly access financial data, track performance against projections, and generate variance reports through simple conversational queries.

    The solution's AI-assisted reporting capabilities streamline financial reporting processes by automatically generating customized model performance reports, variance analyses, and financial forecasts. This automation helps organizations maintain consistent model oversight while reducing the manual effort required for regular financial reporting and model updates.

    AI features to improve financial modeling:

    • Automated financial insights
    • Ability to easily query complex financial models
    • Automatic sharing of insights via Slack

    Pigment AI 

    Pigment AI enhances financial modeling workflows through NLP and an intelligent conversational interface. The platform's smart visualization system automatically suggests the most effective ways to present financial model data and metrics, recommending formats like waterfall charts for variance analysis or tornado diagrams for sensitivity testing. This AI-guided approach benefits financial teams during modeling cycles, accelerating the analysis process and improving accuracy.

    The system leverages ML to analyze historical financial data and provide data-driven insights based on user queries. During financial modeling cycles, Pigment AI offers intelligent suggestions to help finance teams refine their models and projections across various business dimensions.

    Financial analysts can explore different aspects of their models using suggested analytical prompts (such as "analyze sensitivity to cost of capital" or "identify optimal debt structure") and dive deeper with follow-up queries. These AI-driven insights integrate seamlessly into financial models, forecasts, and other analytical processes within the Pigment platform, enabling more informed financial decision-making.

    AI features to improve financial modeling:

    • Intelligent financial data visualization
    • Ability to drill down into model parameters using AI prompts
    • AI-suggested prompts to help refine projections

    Drivetrain vs. the field: Why Drivetrain is the best financial modeling software for your business

    In the earlier sections, we detailed the features along with the pros and cons of 13 financial modeling software tools on the market today. In addition to the features business in each market segment need, there are a couple of additional features that are critical to ensure a successful modeling effort regardless of business size. 

    Any financial modeling software you choose should:

    1. Provide real-time visibility into current business performance by centralizing financial/business data and plans to manage and analyze the information more efficiently.
    2. Enable stakeholders (both internal and external) to collaborate on plans and data, analyze and identify bottlenecks, and make amendments as needed to achieve their business goals.

    Given these filters, Drivetrain stands out as a simple and intuitive platform for first-time users and finance teams, which can be used for building simple to highly complex financial models easily, modeling different scenarios and conducting what-if analysis, and creating flexible rolling budgets.

    Drivetrain can be considered as the go-to financial modeling software as it not only provides a highly sophisticated and powerful calculation engine capable of meeting the needs of both mid-market and enterprise businesses, but also offers the familiarity and ease of Excel spreadsheets through its user-friendly interface. Powerful, yet simple. That’s Drivetrain.

    Real-world use cases for a financial modeling software like Drivetrain

    Dental Intelligence, a fast-growing SaaS company serving dental practices, had a solid forecasting method but an increasingly painful workflow. Their finance team juggled bloated Excel files and manual data transfers between QuickBooks and spreadsheets, leading to duplication, delays, and frequent crashes. As they scaled, their existing setup simply couldn’t keep up with the pace or complexity of their growth.

    That’s when Drivetrain entered the picture. With Drivetrain, they got the best of both worlds: a flexible, Excel-like interface with hardened formulas, real-time data sync, and easy integration with QuickBooks. 

    Now, financial reviews take a few hours instead of two days, board reporting is streamlined with role-based data access, and the team can drill into data deeper than ever before without breaking anything. 

    As Kasey Curtis, VP of Finance & Accounting, puts it: “Drivetrain has simplified our life by eliminating many manual steps involved with maintaining an excel forecast. Importing actuals, saving snapshots and scenarios, and creating new metrics and calculations is MUCH easier than in excel. It also doesn't have the "black box" feeling of many of the big box FP&A softwares.”

    How to choose the right financial modeling software for your business

    Financial modeling is the creation of models to represent the potential performance of a company. While there are a lot of great tools that help you with the above, it is important to know what makes a tool the right one for you? In the sections above, we have listed tools best suited according to industry size however there are certain features that are essential for every organization when it comes to choosing a financial modeling software. Let’s have a look at those: 

    What features to look for in a financial modeling software?

    1. Native Integrations

    At the top of our list of core features for any financial modeling software is fast and seamless integrations with all the systems containing source data for your modeling process.

    Integration with source systems eliminates the need for manual entry of data (and the resulting errors), thereby making more time and effort friendly.

    For example, the 800+ data connectors that Drivetrain offers can automatically pull in financial and business data from various business systems with ETL processes that make it useful and accessible in real time. An important part of the ETL is mapping and classification. Drivetrain helps with automatic data mapping across ERP, CRM, HRIS, and billing systems, including custom fields.

    This creates a single source of truth with reliable, business-ready data that users can sync on demand (e.g., every hour or once a day) to directly manipulate, analyze, and derive timely insights. It also ensures your model is always based on the most current financial information

    2. Real-time, automated multi-dimensional reporting

    Dimensions are attributes of metrics by which you can view, break down and compare to better understand your business. This involves grouping/filtering different dimensions (e.g., expansion revenue by region, market segment, product, channel, etc.). You can also compare time dimensions (e.g., past period vs. present period) or different scenarios (e.g., best case vs. base case).

    This process of comparing different dimensions in your business is known as multi-dimensional analysis or modeling; a very powerful capability you’ll want to look for in a financial modeling software.

    Multi-dimensional analysis brings clarity and context to financial and operational data, helping leaders spot risks, surface opportunities, and make confident, forward-looking decisions.

    A financial modeling software supporting multi-dimensional reporting essentially means getting access to real-time deeper data to answer second and third-order questions and reveal those “hard-to-find” insights.

    3. Predictive forecasting

    Predictive forecasting is one of the most important features a business needs in financial modeling software.

    Cash flow forecasting capabilities are especially important for SaaS companies and other types of businesses to ensure liquidity and sufficient funds to pay for their day-to-day operations and support growth initiatives. Cash flow forecasting enables proactive management of cash resources, anticipating funding needs, and avoiding a cash flow crisis.

    The functionality to forecast cash flows accurately by considering both revenue and expense projections, timing of cash inflows and outflows, capital expenditures, debt repayments, and other financial activities is critical.

    A key part of predictive forecasting is being able to access historical data in real-time, use various types of forecasting methods (preferably already built-in in the tool) and quickly change assumptions for creating these forecasts without having to alt-tab on multiple different pages or spreadsheets.

    4. Scenario analysis

    Uncertainty is a fact of life for any business. The ability to conduct scenario planning and what-if analysis in real time is critical for CFOs to evaluate the impact of different scenarios on their budgets and enables more informed and proactive decision-making.

    5. Customizable templates

    Of course, any financial modeling tool should allow businesses to create models from scratch. However, the best options will be those that also offer templates to speed up the process.

    Modeling templates are very helpful in modeling because they can significantly accelerate the time-to-value and ultimately the ROI of whatever financial modeling software you choose. However, all templates are not created equal.

    SaaS businesses in particular often have unique business models, pricing strategies, and growth trajectories, which makes one-size-fits all templates marginally useful at best. When evaluating financial modeling software it’s a good idea to take a close look at the templates provided to determine if they will suit your needs and if not, how easy it will be to customize them.

    The best templates, such as those Drivetrain provides, incorporate modeling best practices and are flexible enough to accommodate all the unique characteristics of your business model. With Drivetrain templates, you can customize assumptions, inputs, and formulas according to your specific requirements, industry-specific nuances, and changing market conditions.

    6. Dynamic dashboards

    Visualizing key financial metrics and performance indicators helps in monitoring progress, identifying trends, and communicating the business's financial health effectively.

    When on the lookout for financial modeling software to measure your business performance, consider software platforms that offer interactive dashboards with enriched reporting features for presenting financial data, including budgets, variances, scenarios, etc. for faster, more informed decision-making.

    7. Multi-dimensional modeling

    Financial planning involves many moving parts and several variables (beyond financial figures). This is why selecting software that allows you to create multi-dimensional financial models, reports, and dashboards that meet your specific needs is vital.

    You should be able to tailor inputs, calculations, and outputs as per your organization's unique requirements. Most importantly, you should be able to model at the speed and dimensionality of your business operations.

    8. Onboarding, training and customer success

    There’s always a learning curve with any new tool. However, a great onboarding experience can help your teams adopt the product quickly and leverage it to its full potential. An in-house implementation team, interactive walkthroughs, self-service support, and quick customer service will ensure your questions are resolved in a timely manner that will reduce your time to value.

    What are the different types of business budgeting software for SaaS?

    Budgeting is a core function of SaaS finance teams, and most are still using spreadsheets to create their annual budgets. However, spreadsheets have some pretty big limitations in terms of using them for budgeting. Accuracy is a big one. Everything, data and formulas, have to be entered into a spreadsheet manually, which makes them inherently error-prone.

    And of course, when every department has its own budget and uses its own methods and spreadsheets for forecasting costs and revenue, reconciling them all to create a budget everyone can agree on can take weeks. By the time you’re done, there is also no easy way to be certain that none of those numbers have changed in the meantime.

    These fundamental issues are what gave birth to the category of what we now know as modern FP&A software (aka strategic finance software) and have driven its continued evolution. Our feature comparisons indicate the maturity of each of these tools in terms of their FP&A features. Here we’ll take a look at the degree to which each solution relies on spreadsheets.

    These are some of the challenges that led to the creation, and continued development of what is now known as modern FP&A software. If you’re ready to trade in your spreadsheets for a purpose-built solution for business budgeting and planning, this section will help you understand the different types of all 16 of the FP&A tools we’ve covered in this review in terms of the degree to which each relies on spreadsheets.

    Source: Adapted from FP&A software classifications developed by Paul Barnhurst (The FP&A Guy).

    Software/
    Platform
     Market SectorWeb application that replaces spreadsheetsWeb application that integrates with spreadsheetsApplication that uses spreadsheets for calculationsApplication that uses spreadsheets for calculations
    Drivetrain
    Enterprise & Mid-market
    Anaplan
    Enterprise
    Workday Adaptive Planning
    Enterprise
    Oracle BPCS
    Enterprise
    Pigment
    Enterprise
    SAP Business Planning
    Enterprise
    Datarails
    Mid-market
    Vena
    Mid-market
    Mosaic
    Mid-market
    Abacum
    Mid-market
    Cube
    Mid-market
    Causal
    Startups & Small business
    Budgyt
    Startups & Small business
    Fathom
    Startups & Small business
    Finmark
    Startups & Small business

    FAQ

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